I was just wondering, I use 240 gr. factory Hornady bullets for whitetail deer in my M629 S&W. A friend can reload for me and I'm thinking about a "lighter" bullet. A little more hand-friendly. If so, what should I tell him to load? The 44 Specials he just gave me (haven't fired yet) say this:

180 gr. HP Remington
21.0 wt. in grains
2400 powder name/number
Win. WLP primer brand/number

To me that's all foreign..........thanks

Don't know if I would have jumped right into 21gr. of 2400 in a .44sp. case even with a 180gr. bullet. Probably within .44MAG. pressure limits, but I'd hate to see one get put into a light 5-shot .44special chambered revolver.

Had a friend who belived in the light bullet/high speed philosphy of hunting...used 180gr. bullets with his .44mag. (Redhawk). By today's loading manuals he was about 10% over listed max. for that powder (H110)....by the manuals of the day, it was listed by at least two. Reguardless...he used it for a few years as the deer in this area are not very large and it killed well.

Even pushed as hard as he did, those 180's did seem a bit more easy-going on my hand when I shot them...in comparison, was shooting the old Norma 240gr. ammo (the old loads in 20 round boxes with steel jackets amrked "carbine loads"). Was notciably LOUDER and a good bit of flash...but the revolver rose up in recoil a bit less.

Your loads are pretty much .44mag. pressure/velocity in short cases. Will make one more pitch for care....from what I've seen and tested, the modern version of 2400 is NOT the same as the old version. Modern stuff burns a bit cleaner, but I believe it's a bit FASTER...most of my old loads had to be reduced a bit with the new lots.

Heard too many reports of erratic behavior with the light .44 bullets. I'd stick with 240gr. bullets at the bottom level.

Don't load magnum loads in 'special' cases - disaster waiting to happen. If your friend insists that this is a good idea I certainly would not shoot any of his reloads.

Tell ya what the best plan of all might be - round up a big pile of .44 brass (either magnum or special) and load a huge pile of something like a 200 or 240gr. bullet at around 900fps. Say with 7 or 8 grains of Unique or something like that, check your load manuals to be sure of the exact charge.

Plenty of practice and you can build up to where the full-power loads are no problem.

Sound advice, but I should clarify that the specs I posted was loaded into magnum brass and not the shorter special. I think I'll stay with the 240 Hornady for deer and the other for paper.

My personal rule is to never use anyone else's handloads. I don't know your friend, but it's too complicated and easy to make mistakes and there are a lot of witchdoctors making unique brews. If he did make a mistake, he'd also be embarrassed and humiliated and you or your gun would be endangered to save a few pennies. It ain't worth it.

IMO 245-265gr bullets are perfect for whitetails. I prefer lead, since there is plenty of diameter there and you get reliable performance. The better 180gr and 210gr jacketed are probably fine (I haven't used them other than plinking), but seem a bit lightly constructed to be as reliable as the larger sizes, esp as velocities increase. I think of them as 'defense' bullets rather than hunting bullets. They're probably better at .44 spl speeds rather than mag speeds.

Your Hornady 240's are about ideal for deer. Like Mike said, get plenty of practice with lighter loads and use the full power stuff for hunting. I personally use a cast 300 for most all of my hunting in my 629. At a tad over 1200 fps it is very accurate and has plenty of punch for anything around here. Have taken deer with it already. Hope to get a shot at an elk in a few days.

I concur- stick with the 240. It will do the job.

Could it really be? Is that THE Bill Lester?

Welcome Back!!!

LOL!

Oh, I've lurked around some but haven't posted. You and all the other moderators do such a super job that my input would be superfluous. But figured I'd stop in, say Hi. I also have a Savage 99 for sale that may be going soon.